GHR ﻿﻿Foundation's﻿﻿ ﻿Inter﻿-Religious Action funding works to improve development outcomes, build lasting community connections and advance peace by mobilizing religious leaders and communities to address common challenges. GHR was recently honored to host USAID, a key partner in our global development initiatives. With a shared focus on sustainable local impact, GHR leverages the government agency's resources in places like the Central African Republic, Cambodia and Nigeria to improve development outcomes, build lasting community connections and advance peace by mobilizing religious leaders and communities to address common challenges.

A recent column by the Star Tribune's John Rash recognizes the role of Minnesota-based institutions such as GHR on the global stage, especially when it comes to issues like countering extremism. Both the American Refugee Committee's (ARC) John Griffith and USAID's Associate Administrator Eric Postel remarked on the importance of partnership in strengthening communities. "Postel pointed to ARC’s efforts," Rash writes, "as well as those from many Minnesota-based entities such as the GHR Foundation as examples of how design isn’t only about places, but processes, such as interfaith dialogues."

GHR recently attended the“Diplomacy Begins Here Summit,”hosted by Global Minnesota in partnership with the State Department and Global Ties U.S. at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs. Participants from the State Department and local peacebuilding organizations discussed approaches to countering extremism. GHR's Communication Director Chris Berger had the opportunity to moderate a discussion with plenary speaker George Selim, director of the Office of Community Partnerships at the Department of Homeland Security, on promoting community resilience.

During their visit to GHR, Postel and the director of USAID’s Center for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives Mark Brinkmoeller discussed the agency’s belief in public-private partnerships and its growing commitment to faith-based initiatives. Brinkmoeller and Postel then sat down with senior program advisor Andreas Hipple for a video interview on the expanding partnership, as well as GHR’s ongoing inter-religious action leadership. Watch the discussion below.

To learn more about the various ongoing partnerships – including USAID – that make the Foundation’s sustainable impact possible, contact us.